Incandescent bulbs are slowly being phased out in favor of more efficient lighting sources. This led to an increased use of compact fluorescent bulbs which are more efficient than incandescent bulbs, but which tend to contain dangerous materials, such as mercury. Additionally, many people find the color temperature of light emitted by compact fluorescent bulbs to not be aesthetically pleasing for many applications, such as household lighting in kitchens, bathrooms, and living rooms; some commercial applications; and the like.
Recent advances in manufacturing light emitting diodes (LEDs) combined with the efficiency and long lifetime of LEDs have led to an increase in the availability and affordability of LED lighting devices. LED lighting devices offer advantages over compact fluorescent bulbs including longer lifetime and the absence of dangerous materials. Also, LED lighting devices may be configured to emit light in a wide range of color temperatures.
Both incandescent bulbs and compact fluorescent bulbs must be designed to maintain a specific environment within the bulb (e.g., a vacuum or a specific mix of gasses). LEDs, by contrast, can function under regular atmospheric conditions. However, LEDs are small, solid state devices, often require being powered via electronic driver circuitry, and have particular requirements for the dissipation of heat created by and/or in the vicinity of the LEDs.
Thus, there is a need for LED lighting devices in traditional bulb form factors.